In one of the photos you took from Keste, a guy is spreading a bright yellow sauce-type 'thingy' on a dough, do you know what that was? Looks interesting.

Paul

Paul,

When I was talking to Roberto, I was so in awe of how fast his pizzas were coming in and out of the oven and of him making the pizzas. I did ask him what dressing he was putting on that one skin, but now I forget what he said. I was watching how fast his hands made pizzas also. This is the menu from Keste’s. http://kestepizzeria.com/menu.html and a slideshow from Keste’s http://kestepizzeria.com/menu.html I asked Roberto if he ever heard of pizzamaking.com and he said yes, he did look at pizzamaking.com. I also asked him how hot his oven was and he said usually around 900-950 degrees F. I asked him if he always kept it at that temperature and he said when they are busy. As I posted before he was very gracious. We were seated at the second table in front of the prep area, so I did get to watch Roberto make pizzas. I believe I finally got to try a real Neapolitan pizza, at its best. This was something I was waiting for awhile. The flavor, texture, smell and feel of the pizzas were all great. Roberto’s pizzas were awesome.

PaulsPizza

Thanks Andreguidon. I just checked their menu and one of the pizzas says 'butternut squash cream' so it looks like you were right.

Norma,

Thanks for that info, I bet it was great sitting so close, watching an expert doing his thing.I have just looked at the menu and it's huge! There are a fair few on that menu that I would demolish! haha.

Thanks for that info, I bet it was great sitting so close, watching an expert doing his thing.I have just looked at the menu and it's huge! There are a fair few on that menu that I would demolish! haha.

Paul

Paul,

I was lucky to be seated that close and be able to watch Roberto. If you watch the video Andre posted you can see where we were seated on the right along the wall. Roberto is an expert in every way. From his handling of the soft dough, to putting the dressing on his pies, is amazing. I could have also demolished and tried many of his pizzas, but I had wanted to have room to try other foods in NY. I will go back to Keste's someday.

I am still looking for the pictures of the “Naked Cowboy”. I know I have them somewhere, or have even given them to my granddaughter. I have so many pictures taken in NY, but they were taken on my Canon camera, before I had a digital camera.

These are a few of pictures from NY I found. The one is of the Statue of Liberty, another taken from the top of the Empire State Building, showing the World Trade Centers, and the last one was taken while visiting the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. You can also see the World Trade Centers on that picture. I also have pictures that were taken when all the flowers and memorials were near the little church near where the Twin World Trade Towers were. I will keep looking for the “Naked Cowboy” pictures.

Norma

I have been thinking about the pizzas I had at Keste’s. As I posted before they were so much different than any other pizzas I have tasted. They were billowy and something like a pillow. The crust wasn’t crisp on the bottom. I couldn’t taste the char, from the pizzas being baked in the oven. As I also posted before the crust had an amazing taste. The slices were foldable. I am wondering if anyone else has noticed this if they have been to Keste’s or even if someone has made pizza like Keste’s or maybe tried some pizzas like this in Italy. It makes me wonder if this is how some pizzas taste in Italy. I haven’t ever been there, so I have no idea of how pizzas taste in Italy. If anyone knows, I would appreciate their comments.

Hi Norma,I just checked back in on your day in NY story. I grew up there and was a NYC fireman near Canal Street many years ago. The reason I have been making pizza for thirty years is I could never get a decent pie anywhere I lived. Your pictures brought back memories. Thanks!

Hi Norma,I just checked back in on your day in NY story. I grew up there and was a NYC fireman near Canal Street many years ago. The reason I have been making pizza for thirty years is I could never get a decent pie anywhere I lived. Your pictures brought back memories. Thanks!

Cranky,

Wow, I didn’t know at one time you were one of the bravest and what they called the “finest” people of NY. I bet you could tell a lot of stories about your years of being a member of the FDNY. I congratulate you on doing a job like that in NY. I heard all those fire trucks whizzing by with their sirens on.

It’s also interesting you started making pizzas, because you couldn’t find any decent pizzas where you lived. Since you lived in NY awhile ago, do you remember anything about how pizzas were made then? Were they made with fresh yeast? I think commercial yeast just came into existence not too many years ago for making pizzas. I also wonder how you remember previous pizzas, from the time you lived in NY. Do you remember what the best pizzerias were to buy pizzas when you lived in NYC?

Wow, I didn’t know at one time you were one of the bravest and what they called the “finest” people of NY.

For accuracy's sake, the NYC cops are called the Finest and the firemen are the Bravest. I can tell lots of stories. It was a great adventure. When you are in the middle of it you don't realize how unique the situation is, running the streets day and night in the Big Apple, doing things that can't be captured in movies. I saw some very amazing acts of bravery, comedy and tragedy. It was one chapter in life that is now past, until I come upon a car wreck, or fire and I feel 21 again.

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Since you lived in NY awhile ago, do you remember anything about how pizzas were made then? Were they made with fresh yeast? I think commercial yeast just came into existence not too many years ago for making pizzas.

Sorry, I was a pizza eater then, not a maker. I do remember enjoying watching the pizzas be made.

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I also wonder how you remember previous pizzas, from the time you lived in NY.

Are you kidding? I can still taste them.

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Do you remember what the best pizzerias were to buy pizzas when you lived in NYC?

I grew up on Staten Island in the 50s. There was no bad pizza then. It was all NY style. I remember Deninos, Polizanos, Joe and Pats, Nunzios, The Surf Club, Pal Joeys, on SI. There was a guy named Benny who had a few places. He was always moving. His final place was in Stapleton on Broad Street or Canal. He did not even have a sign outside. In Brooklyn it was Queen Pizza near Borrough Hall, and a place in Bay Ridge that was great and a guy in Coney Island who had a coal fired oven. In Manhatten it was Goldfarb's (no kidding). But there were lots of good places.

Here is an FDNY pizza story. One night we were returning from a fire. I worked in Man. The Lieutenant wanted a pizza from a place in Bklyn near where he used to work. He had us drive over the Bklyn Bridge, breaking all regulations, figuring if there was a fire we would hear it on the radio. We got in an accident with a beer truck and it was our fault. The driver was a fireman from NJ moonlighting. He said if the cops came and filed a report he would be fired. We went back to the firehouse and spray painted the bumper.

I will always call you the “bravest” and the “finest”, because you put your life for others to help keep them safe. I know the NY police are called “finest” because they do protect, also. I really don’t care about accuracy.

I loved your story you told about when you were a fireman. I had to almost fall off my chair laughing. That was really a good story. Did you ever get the pizza? I am sure you have many more stories to tell.

Good to hear you do remember all the previous pizza you ate. I guess most of them aren’t in business anymore. That Goldfarb name for a pizza business is interesting.

Norma, that article on Slice focuses on how the home pizza maker can make Keste-ish pizza in a standard pizza oven. Caputo 00 pizzeria flour does not fare too well when cooked at the 500 to 550°F temps most kitchen ovens max out at. Olive oil in the dough can assist in this regard.

For pizzas made in shop, Keste is using fresh yeast and is not using olive oil in their dough.

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It still intrigues me how soft Roberto’s pizza was at Keste’s last week. Does anyone know if Roberto uses fresh yeast in his dough? The taste of the crust was just right in my opinion.

Norma

His crusts are indeed soft. The flour itself plays a role in that, but the mixing, kneading, fermentation, handling and method of cooking are critical as well.

Glad you got to Keste, which I feel is among the best Neapolitan pizza I have yet to try. Motorino is slightly different, with the crust having more of an outer snap and more prominent char, but is also quite delicious as well. As far as crust flavor, I am lamenting how far I have to travel to taste Mangieri's pizzas again.

I thought that Keste’s wouldn’t use olive oil in their dough. Thanks for confirming that the article on Slice was just for home pizza makers. Thanks for also confirming that Keste’s does use fresh yeast in their dough. I wonder what kind of fresh yeast Keste’s uses. I have access to fresh yeast from my distributor, but I would need to buy 24 1 lb. blocks. It is only 22.00 to purchase 24 1 lb. blocks. I don’t know if the fresh yeast could be frozen or not, but my distributor said customers do freeze the fresh yeast, but they don’t recommend that. I am going to try and purchase some fresh yeast from one of the bakeries at market, if one of them still uses fresh yeast. I know the shelf life of fresh yeast is usually only around 2 weeks. Since reading different posts here on the forum, I think fresh yeast does give better gas formation in pizza dough.

I can still taste exactly how Keste’s pizza was, when I ate it last week. It is still haunting me how wonderful those pies were. I see some people did post on the other link I provided that the crust became soggy, but the pies I had weren’t that way at all.

I understand that Caputo flour in any form should be baked in a higher temperature oven. I have used Caputo flour in my friends Steve’s (Ev) oven and can see the difference between my deck oven and Steve’s WFO. I might try a blend of Caputo with KASL and try to turn my deck oven up in temperature, if I get some fresh yeast.

I also can understand that mixing, kneading, fermentation, and handling all come into play when making any dough.

When I get to visit NY again I will try to make it to Motorino’s. Their pizza sounds delicious, too. I also want to visit Keste’s again.

I know I will never get to try Mangieri's pies. Hope you get to go to San Francisco to eat his pies again.

Norma, supermarkets in england give fresh yeast away for free from their bakery departments so maybe if you only want to try a small amount the supermarkets near you might do the same?

Paul

Paul,

It may be different where Norma is but in the U.S. most supermarkets in major markets that bake things receive the dough pre-prepared from commissaries. Some supermarkets do make dough from scratch but the one near me that does uses dry yeast, not fresh yeast. The pizza operators in the U.S who use fresh yeast are almost always volume producers. For them, fresh yeast is the cheapest form of yeast. Fresh yeast has a short shelf live so it can't be held for long before it starts to go downhill.

Peter

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PaulsPizza

Thanks Peter, when I worked in a family bakery they made me work for a week in a supermarket bakery to see how things were done in a different style of bakery, at the supermarket they got in sacks of flour that had all the dough conditioners etc etc already in, all we had to do was dump the sack into the mixer and add the recommended yeast and water amount and turn that bad boy on to mix. I think most UK supermarkets do it the same way.

The family bakery where I worked used only fresh yeast for both their warm and cold rise doughs. We had problems with the yeast not being fresh enough at times.

The kind of yeast I can purchase at my local supermarkets is cake yeast, but that isn’t the same as fresh yeast. I am not sure if some of the bakeries at market still use fresh yeast or not, but I am friends with them, so I can ask. Some of them also have stores and do bake their own bread. I don’t think any of my local supermarkets still baked their baked goods with fresh yeast, as Peter stated above.

At least you have a understanding how to use fresh yeast if you ever want to try fresh yeast in a test pizza dough. Since you have worked in a bakery, you could try some with your flour is you want. I can understand there can be problems with fresh yeast not being fresh enough. Good to know that fresh yeast can be used in cold fermented and room temperature fermented doughs. If I can get my hands on some fresh yeast, I was also thinking about trying the fresh yeast with the flour you sent me.

The kind of yeast I can purchase at my local supermarkets are cake yeast, but that isn’t the same as fresh yeast.

Norma,

Unless I misunderstood your comment, cake yeast sold in supermarkets is fresh yeast. It may not be the same as what bakers might order in bricks, and may not be quite as fresh, but the two forms of yeast are the same.